Local Radar

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Fox Creek High School given 7 months to repay District for undeserved funds

web posted November 17, 2006

COUNTY – Fox Creek Charter High School is been granted a bit of a reprieve by the Edgefield County School Board in repaying funding it received above the schools allotment. According to Edgefield County School District Officials, the latest overpayment is between $75,000 and $100,000 dollars. The reason for the overpayment was due to student population figures given by Fox Creek being in excess of their actual enrollment. When the official numbers were confirmed the school was required to pay back the excess funding. Fox Creek is unable to do so in the fashion they received the funding, which was all at once.

Larry Derrick, Edgefield County School District CFO suggested the school be allowed no more than three months to return the money. This would keep the school from incurring further debt due to over stated enrollment over the next reporting period. In spite of the District recommendation, the Edgefield County School Board, reportedly at the motion by Vice-chairman Scott Chitty who is a former Fox Creek Charter School Board member, gave the school seven months to return the money.

The measure passed by a 6-1 vote.

School Board member Andy Livingston, one of two Certified Public Accountants on the board, was the only board member to vote against the measure. Livingston asked if he understood the situation the school was in properly by questioning if the school received the funds in advance, and they were actually fiscally viable, they should be able to return the funds without a problem.

Mr. Livingston made the point that if the school was given excess funding it did not deserve, and was going to be receiving a greatly reduced amount of funding due to repayment, how the school would be able to operate. “Am I missing something?” Mr. Livingston asked.

Fox Creek Charter High School Officials said they had the money but they did not want to deplete their reserves. Fox Creek has made repeated promises of a new school over the last year and a half. The first being a new building would be built before the start of the 2006-2007 school year and boasted a USDA loan. Since then the promised building was stated as being completed by midyear. Now that that deadline is upon them Fox Creek has stated they are “working” on two loans for the new building and yet another deadline would be given.

Several Fox Creek Charter High School parents have emailed several questions to EdgefieldDaily.com asking what they are to believe. “It seems we can’t believe anything they (FCHS School Board members) say,” one wrote. Another wrote, “I thought all this (funding for the new school) was a done deal, now when the time comes they have more excuses than results.”

Former School Board Chairman Brad Covar, also a CPA and present School Board member, asked last month how Fox Creek was able to meet its financial obligations when the funding they would be receiving is below their budgeted expenses. Mr. Covar did not see how the fiscal obligations of the school could be maintained with reduced funding but not a reduction in staff or services.

FCHS School Board Chair Sherolyn Bishop said the school was solvent and could maintain the present level of their financial obligations, but provided no evidence in that regard, only promises. The reduction in funding further hinders the schools ability to fund its operation, but that was not addressed.

Other issues left unaddressed by the Edgefield County School District are the overcharging of out-of-district students and the surpassing of the percentage of those allowed attending. Another issue, which is that of the racial make-up of the student population, has also been ignored. Fox Creek is to maintain a similar percentage of racial make-up as Strom Thurmond, which has 64% minority students. Fox Creek boasts a 99.1% white student population, supported by public funding from school taxes.



 

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